Your Medicine Cabinet

by Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger

02 Nov 2006 02:02 PM

Did you know that heat and moisture can render some medicines and first aid supplies virtually useless? Store your pain relievers, prescription medicine, and first aid stuff in a linen cabinet or another dry place where they'll be handy but not near the hot steam from your daily shower.

While you're moving things around, check the expiration dates. Yes, prescription and over the counter medicines should be marked with expiration dates. If the date has passed, dispose of the medicine! Make sure to keep ALL medicines out of the reach of children and pets -- a curious kid or nosy pup could pull expired medicines out of the trash and make themselves good and sick.

Some essentials for your medicine cabinet:

• Pain relievers and fever reducers. If you've got young children, be sure to keep something aspirin-free around. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is safe for frequent pain and fever relief. Use naproxen (Aleve) or ibuprofen (Advil) for occasional pain.
• Decongestants and antihistamines. Antihistamines are essential for allergy sufferers. Decongestants work for colds and allergies both. Not sure which you need? Combination decongestants and antihistamines are available.
• Stomach relief. Look for something that will relieve heartburn, stomach upset, indigestion, and diarrhea.
• A medicine spoon. This helps make dosing liquid medications easy and accurate.
• Hydrocortisone cream for itching.
• Antibiotic ointment for cuts, scrapes, and burns.
• Antiseptic wash like rubbing alcohol or iodine. Prepackaged alcohol wipes are handy if you need antiseptic frequently -- I use them twice a day to give insulin shots.
• Bandages, gauze pads, and tape for first aid. Cloth and plastic bandages work just about as well as liquid and spray-on wound sealers. Gauze and tape make bandages when a normal band-aid isn't working.
• Tweezers for dealing with splinters.
• Scissors for cutting gauze pads to size or getting bandages off easily.
• A digital thermometer.

I also like to have baby powder (to soothe prickly heat and razor rash), baby wipes (for quick and easy clean up), and salt (for warm salt water mouth rinses and throat gargles) handy.

What essentials are in your medicine cabinet?

Learn more about Aimee Amodio

Aimee is a fiction writer... dog lover... music lover...

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